Dismissal of 2 Ambedkar University Delhi professors: Students & teachers’ groups seek reinstatement
The AUD administration, in a statement to The Indian Express, said the two professors were sacked as part of disciplinary action “due to their involvement in irregularities related to the one-time regularisation/absorption policy for non-teaching staff”.
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According to the AUD, the decision to sack the faculty members followed a “thorough investigation and inquiry, initiated by the Directorate of Higher Education, Government of NCT of Delhi. (Express Photo)Students and teachers from various universities demanded the reinstatement of two Dr B R Ambedkar University Delhi (AUD) faculty members who were dismissed earlier this month.
“On November 5, 2024, the Board of Management (BoM) of Dr B R Ambedkar University, Delhi, made the decision to terminate with immediate effect the employment of Prof (Salil) Mishra and Prof (Asmita) Kabra for their role in regularisation of 38 non-teaching staff who had dedicated themselves to the building of the university in its early years through the ‘one-time absorption policy’ following long-standing demands of AUD teaching and non-teaching staff and students,” the Democratic Teachers’ Initiative (DTI) and All Indian Students’ Association said in a joint statement Sunday at the Delhi Press Club.
The AUD administration, in a statement to The Indian Express, said the two professors were sacked as part of disciplinary action “due to their involvement in irregularities related to the one-time regularisation/absorption policy for non-teaching staff”.
According to the AUD, the decision to sack the faculty members followed a “thorough investigation and inquiry, initiated by the Directorate of Higher Education, Government of NCT of Delhi, which revealed several irregularities, including unauthorised appointments”.
DTI convener Uma Gupta said at the press conference Sunday, “We’ve come together in solidarity with our colleagues of great integrity and principles, Salil and Asmita, who have been punished for daring to speak up in favour of an equitable public education.”
Jawaharlal Nehru University faculty member Professor Atul Sood emphasised that teachers across universities have expressed solidarity as the dismissal is an “attack on all”. “The attack aims to ensure all faculty remain engaged in legal battles against arbitrary decisions and that a public dialogue on the idea of higher education and the idea of a nation is not allowed to happen,” he said.
JNUSU President Dhananjay, too, expressed solidarity.
On Thursday, the executive committee of the Indian History Congress said it has taken note of the “action of the Board of Management of Ambedkar University, Delhi, in terminating services of Professor Salil Mishra, a fellow historian, and Asmita Kabra, not for any personal misconduct, but for implementing a university decision, which now has been reserved post facto by the present administration of the university”.
“The Executive Committee, after scrutinising essential facts of the case, strongly feels that no person should suffer for administrative action taken, in all sincerity, and without any benefit for themselves,” it stated, calling for the reinstatement of the two professors.
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